Rivers United beat Rayon Sport of Rwanda 2-0, in the first leg of their CAF Confederation Cup play-off in Port Harcourt on Sunday.
Emeka Atuloma and Guy Kuemian scored for the hosts, as they won comfortably.
Atuloma opened scoring in the 29th minute, coverting Ifeanyi Nweke’s cross. Although the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) continuted to press, they failed to convert their chances in the first half.
However, six minutes after the restart, Kuemian fired in from 25 yards to seal the win for Rivers United.
The return leg will take place April 22 in Kigali.
Nigeria’s other representative in the CAF Confederation Cup, Enugu Rangers, have crashed out after losing 3-0 in their second leg tie against Zesco United of Zambia on Saturday.
Zesco progressed into the group stage 5-2 on aggregate.